Securing Medical Progress

Artificial hips, knee joint replacements, screws for fixing fractures – the demand for implants is high. Scientists in two areas are developing new materials for implants: the Institute of Biomaterial Science works with materials based on polymers and the Institute of Materials Research studies those based on magnesium alloys.

Focus

Polymer-based Biomaterials

The focus of research at our Teltow branch is the development of innovative polymer-based biomaterials for medical application.

Institute of Biomaterial Science

Study ranges from cell and tissue-specific plastics for use in regenerative medicine to active implants, adsorbent materials for filter systems and to intelligent drug delivery systems. The innovations are then transferred to clinical practice. Close contact therefore exists with hospitals – in particular the Charité, Universitätsmedizin Berlin – and with the industry to expedite the introduction of medical products.

Institute

Campus Teltow

Institute of Biomaterial Science
Kantstraße 55, 14153 Teltow

Phone: +49 (0)3328 352-0

BCRT - Interdisciplinary Translation Center

At the BCRT we develop methods and tools for Regenerative Medicine based on biomaterials and drug delivery systems together with the Charité, Universitätsmedizin Berlin.

Helmholtz Virtual Institute (HVI)

Helmholtz Virtual Institute (HVI) "Multifunctional Biomaterials for Medicine" for the investigation of interactions between polymeric biomaterials and proteins

Helmholtz Program

Within the Helmholtz research field "Key Technologies" the Helmholtz-Zentrum Geesthacht participates in the research programme "BioInterfaces in Technology and Medicine (BIFTM)"

Biomaterials for Regenerative Medicine

Metallic Biomaterials

When a nail or plate is required for fixing a bone fracture, such materials are currently made of titanium or stainless steel. The foreign material, however, must be removed after the bone has healed, otherwise a risk of inflammation exists. The objective in modern implant research is then to develop a material that can be substituted into the body as if it belonged to the organism itself.

The desire is for a biological material that initially supports the bone but then disappears after the body has healed. Magnesium is very well suited for this purpose: this element occurs naturally within the body and possess the advantage that it can selectively dissolve. It is also light, strong and well tolerated by the organism. Magnesium alloys possess physical properties more similar to bones than do other metals.

Carsten Neff

Material researchers in the Magnesium Innovation Centre, MagIC, examine implant materials made of magnesium that can be used as bone replacements in medicine: for example, new magnesium-calcium alloys. These alloys are both stable and elastic, resembling the characteristics of bone.

The alloys are designed in such a way that magnesium serves as a base to which additional alloy elements are added. These additional elements are selected so that nothing negatively influences the organism.The production process is still a cause of considerable concern for the researchers: apart from the alloy composition, the production of the material also exerts crucial influence on its degradation behaviour. Magnesium-calcium bone screws have already been manufactured by means of metal injection moulding (MIM). The challenge with magnesium lies in its high affinity for oxygen. In this case, even small oxygen quantities lead to dramatic changes in mechanical properties.

News

Break-through in materials research: Hamburg scientists develop new materials class based on nanoparticles more

Steckbrief Institut

Materials Design and Characterization: The department "Materials Design and Characterization" is working on application and development of the Metal Injection Moulding technology. Focus is laid on special techniques for processing of titanium based materials